Quentin HopeNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Harvest Public Media provides rich multimedia reports on all aspects of agriculture. Check below to read, view and listen online to the latest stories. Tune in to Morning Edition and All Things Considered to hear broadcasts of select stories. Harvest Public Media is a collaboration of public media stations across the Midwest. Partners are: High Plains Public Radio ; Kansas Public Radio ; KCUR in Kansas City; Iowa Public Radio ; Nebraska Educational Telecommunications; KBIA in Columbia, Mo.; WUIS in Springfield, Ill.; KUNC in Greeley, Colo.; and Tri-States Public Radio in Macomb, Ill.NPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Harvest Public MediaSat, 17 Feb 2018 17:57:05 +0000Harvest Public Mediahttp://hppr.org
Person: Amy MayerBob, Robbie and Leah Maass ready equipment for planting season on their farm near Ellsworth, Iowa. Credit AMY MAYER / HARVEST PUBLIC MEDIA Edit | Remove Three months after his nomination, Sonny Perdue faces a confirmation vote in the U.S. Senate Monday for the post of secretary of agriculture. If confirmed, Perdue will find a desk at USDA piled high with priorities and will be one of the last members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet to be seated. With a declining farm economy, trade with vital global markets in disarray and immigration policy in flux, Perdue confronts an agriculture industry in search of stability. In his initial budget, Trump suggested a 21 percent cut to USDA’s discretionary spending, so Perdue will want to jump into Washington policy discussions quickly. In the Corn Belt, however, it is planting season. That means that most farmers are less worried about Washington and more focused on the weather. As thirty-five-year-old Robbie Maass and his parents Leah and BobEager To Plant, Corn Belt Farmers Also Waiting On Confirmation of New Ag Secretaryhttp://hppr.org/post/eager-plant-corn-belt-farmers-also-waiting-confirmation-new-ag-secretary
75712 as http://hppr.orgMon, 24 Apr 2017 18:18:34 +0000Eager To Plant, Corn Belt Farmers Also Waiting On Confirmation of New Ag SecretaryKristofor HustedImagine you’re a farmer and it’s time to decide what to plant. You need information on supply, demand, prices, outlook -- information from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, university extension services, even economists at the Federal Reserve. All of those agencies depend on data pulled from surveys sent out to farmers. The answers are often compiled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service , which makes data available free. Fewer farmers are responding to surveys, the Agriculture Department says, which could throw the accuracy of the data off, leaving farmers to fend for themselves when making choices for their businesses. Missouri row crop farmer Adam Gatson recently drove more than an hour to attend an economic outlook conference put on by the University of Missouri's’ Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute. He was interested in learning what the current trends are in global demand and where he should sell his corn and soybeans. “IHow A Lack Of Farm Data Could Hurt Farmershttp://hppr.org/post/how-lack-farm-data-could-hurt-farmers
75128 as http://hppr.orgMon, 10 Apr 2017 14:41:22 +0000How A Lack Of Farm Data Could Hurt FarmersHarvest Public MediaThis story is part of the special series United And Divided, which explores the links and rifts between rural and urban America. Rural voters overwhelmingly chose President Donald Trump in the presidential election. But when it comes to the central campaign promise to get tough on trade, rural voters are not necessarily in sync with the administration. Dawson County, Nebraska, could easily be called Trump country. As in most of rural America, Donald Trump won a big majority there – 70 percent of the vote. But it’s also a good place to look at one issue where rural residents have different perspectives: trade. Don Batie farms in Dawson County where the flat, fertile Platte River valley meets the tall, rolling Sandhills. On a bright afternoon he fires up a dusty Freightliner truck hitched to a flatbed trailer to pick up a load of hay bales. Rattling down a gravel road, he traces his family’s history in the area. “My great-grandparents came here 144 years ago from England and homesteadedIn rural Trump Country, trade policy divideshttp://hppr.org/post/rural-trump-country-trade-policy-divides
73988 as http://hppr.orgWed, 15 Mar 2017 06:00:00 +0000In rural Trump Country, trade policy dividesPeggy LoweOver here at Harvest Public Media, we may not have Deep Throat. But we do have Undercover Cowboy. Deep Throat, of course, was the Washington Post reporters’ source for their Pulitzer Prize-winning expose of the Nixon White House and the Watergate burglary. Deep Throat was revealed in 2005 to be Mark Felt, a former FBI official. We recently broke some news via a good leak by someone we called Undercover Cowboy that brought to light a $2.6 million embezzlement case from the Oklahoma Beef Board. No dark parking lots, shadowy Nixon character or, um, presidential resignations, but we were proud of our scoop. But hey, our leaker’s name is cool. And Undercover Cowboy passed us information with some plain old-fashioned talking on the phone and a little email trick. In this era when it appears that it’s getting more impossible than ever to get a factual answer from many government agencies – let alone a response to a Freedom of Information request – we thought we’d offer you some ways to reachWant to blow a whistle? Here’s how to talk to Harvest Public Mediahttp://hppr.org/post/want-blow-whistle-here-s-how-talk-harvest-public-media
73521 as http://hppr.orgFri, 03 Mar 2017 19:48:42 +0000Want to blow a whistle? Here’s how to talk to Harvest Public MediaLuke RunyonIt’s a classic conundrum that comes up every time you’re cleaning out the fridge: the package label says the food is past its prime, but it’s not moldy or smelly. Do you give it a chance or toss it in the trash? For a great number of consumers it’s the latter, but now some of the largest food retail trade groups are hoping to settle the score and clear up the confusion in hopes of keeping more food in bellies, rather than sending heaps of food to landfills . The Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturer's Association, two of the food industry’s largest trade groups, issued new recommendations to retailers and food-makers to modernize their labeling systems and narrow their label language to just two phrases: “Best if used by” to tell consumers that the food is still ok to eat after the date, but freshness matters so eat it quickly; and “Use by” to tell shoppers that the food has a shelf-life and should be eaten before the date on the package. The recommendations by theTo cut food waste, expiration labels get an updatehttp://hppr.org/post/cut-food-waste-expiration-labels-get-update
73142 as http://hppr.orgThu, 23 Feb 2017 07:00:00 +0000To cut food waste, expiration labels get an updateHarvest Public MediaLiz Graznak runs an organic farm in Jamestown, Missouri, which she calls Happy Hollow Farm . She sells her vegetables to local restaurants, in CSA boxes and at the farmer’s market. But eight years ago, after falling in love with the idea of growing her own local produce, the farm she runs today looked like a near-impossible dream. While on track to earn a PhD in plant breeding, Graznak bought her first box of produce from a nearby farmer. Soon after, she decided then that instead of studying plants, she wanted to grow them. Easier said than done, though. “The mortgage aside, it costs a hell of a lot of money to start a farm, and to build the infrastructure, and to buy drip tape and row cover and hoops…I mean just everything you could imagine,” she says. First steps for entrepreneurs: go to a bank, take out a loan and buy some property. Not for Graznak, though, who at that point was making just a small amount as a working graduate student. “No bank was going to give me a loan at making A new barrier to life on the farm: Student debthttp://hppr.org/post/new-barrier-life-farm-student-debt
72803 as http://hppr.orgThu, 16 Feb 2017 07:00:00 +0000A new barrier to life on the farm: Student debtLuke RunyonAfter hundreds of arrests of undocumented immigrants by immigration police, the Trump administration’s increased focus on immigration enforcement has some of the country’s largest farm groups worried. Undocumented immigrants make up a significant portion of the country’s agricultural workforce. A 2016 Pew Research Center study showed undocumented workers are in about 26 percent of the nation’s farm jobs, the highest percentage among all occupations Pew included in the study. A crackdown on immigrant workers could put farms at-risk, and agricultural trade groups are taking precautions. “I think it’s fair to say that everyone in agriculture is nervous and on edge,” says Jackie Klippenstein , an executive with Dairy Farmers of America, a co-op that counts 14,000 dairy farms in 48 states among its members. In the last decade, the nation’s dairies have frequently been the subject of immigration audits, where workers have been charged with using false documents and owners find themselvesIncreased immigration enforcement sets agriculture industry on edgehttp://hppr.org/post/increased-immigration-enforcement-sets-agriculture-industry-edge
72850 as http://hppr.orgThu, 16 Feb 2017 07:00:00 +0000Increased immigration enforcement sets agriculture industry on edgeHarvest Public MediaThis story is part of the special series United And Divided, which explores the links and rifts between rural and urban America. The bell signals the start of second period. A trio of young women take seats in English class, their attention quickly drifting outside the walls of the high school in Fort Morgan, Colorado, eager to talk about what they’re working toward. “I want to become an FBI [agent],” says freshman Mariam Mohammed. “It’s my dream.” On her left, her sister, Mutaas Mohammed, with a clay-colored hijab wrapped around her face and dark purple lipstick, says she wants to study fashion design. The girls’ friend, Isra Mohamud, a senior this year, chimes in: she’s looking at a nursing program at the local community college. All three arrived at the high school fewer than four years ago, part of a decades-long migration of people originally from East Africa, Central America and Mexico to this small, conservative farming community on Colorado’s eastern plains. The young women are Immigrant communities diversify the face of a rural Colorado cityhttp://hppr.org/post/immigrant-communities-diversify-face-rural-colorado-city
72755 as http://hppr.orgTue, 14 Feb 2017 10:01:00 +0000 Immigrant communities diversify the face of a rural Colorado cityJeremy BernfeldHow low can it go? That’s what many in farm country asked about the farm economy Tuesday, after the Agriculture Department forecast another plunge this year in profits for farmers. Net farm income will fall 8.7 percent from last year’s levels, according to the year’s first forecast produced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service (ERS). If realized, that would mark the fourth-straight year of profit declines, after 2013 saw record-highs. The agency expects $62.3 billion in farm profits this year, a drop of an astounding 49.6 percent from 2013, according to USDA data. The price of foundational crops like corn and wheat have slipped dramatically in recent years, thanks in large part to global oversupply, leaving many farmers struggling to break even. Farmland values are down and debt is continuing to rise. While the short-term outlook remains bleak for most farmers, the farm economy has not yet reached a crisis point , economists say. Many farmers booked profitsFarm income forecast to drop for fourth-straight yearhttp://hppr.org/post/farm-income-forecast-drop-fourth-straight-year
72601 as http://hppr.orgFri, 10 Feb 2017 10:01:00 +0000Farm income forecast to drop for fourth-straight yearAngie HaflichIn a hog barn in rural Iowa, veterinarian Paul Thomas’s approach sends pigs scurrying. He watches for unusual behavior. As he walks the length of the barn, Thomas notices one of the two-month-old hogs nestled against the railing at the edge of its pen and reaches over to gently pet the pig’s back. The pig shakes its head and drowsily gets up. “He’s just sleepy,” Thomas says, and by the time he’s spoken the words, the pig has trotted off to join its pen-mates. In the next room, Thomas hears something different. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, there’s a little bit of a sneeze in here?” Thomas says. These pigs, he explains, have a bit of a sniffle. “There’s a good chance that whatever’s causing that might be viral or might be environmental,” Thomas says, noting that it is not a condition that requires treatment. “An antibiotic in that case is not appropriate, it’s not going to do anything.” Human infections resistant to treatment by antibiotics can be deadly, and they are on the rise .Aiming to curb use, new federal rules for antibiotics on the farm leave questionshttp://hppr.org/post/aiming-curb-use-new-federal-rules-antibiotics-farm-leave-questions
71964 as http://hppr.orgThu, 26 Jan 2017 16:40:27 +0000Aiming to curb use, new federal rules for antibiotics on the farm leave questionsUpdate 1/25/2017: The Agricultural Research Service rescinded its initial directive in an email to employees Tuesday evening. Just one day after directing its researchers not to publicly share their research, and after suffering a public relations backlash, the Department of Agriculture’s main research arm has rescinded its original order, saying it “values and is committed to maintaining the free flow of information between our scientists and the American public…” Some employees of the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) received an email Monday from the division’s chief of staff ordering them to stop publicizing their work . On Tuesday evening, the division’s chief administrator sent an email, which was obtained by Harvest Public Media, walking back the directive. “ARS has not blacked out public information,” Chavonda Jacobs-Young wrote in the email. The Agriculture Department found itself in hot water when news of the communication restrictions became public in a report fromAfter backlash, Agriculture Department lifts gag-order on taxpayer-funded researchhttp://hppr.org/post/after-backlash-agriculture-department-lifts-gag-order-taxpayer-funded-research
71963 as http://hppr.orgThu, 26 Jan 2017 16:39:40 +0000After backlash, Agriculture Department lifts gag-order on taxpayer-funded researchJeremy BernfeldEmployees of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s main research arm, the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), received an email from the division’s chief of staff ordering them to stop publicizing their work. “Starting immediately and until further notice, ARS will not release any public-facing documents,” the email from Sharon Drumm reads, in part. “This includes, but is not limited to, news releases, photos, fact sheets, news feeds, and social media content.” The order does not apply to publications released through professional journals, according to a statement by Christopher Bentley, ARS’ director of communications. Buzzfeed News first reported the existence of the memo . The directive comes as President Donald Trump begins his term and before his nominee for Agriculture Secretary, former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue , undergoes U.S. Senate confirmation hearings. The ARS runs about 750 research projects and had a $1.1 billion taxpayer-funded budget in the 2015 fiscal year. The agencyUSDA scientists told not to publicly share their workhttp://hppr.org/post/usda-scientists-told-not-publicly-share-their-work
71922 as http://hppr.orgWed, 25 Jan 2017 10:01:00 +0000USDA scientists told not to publicly share their workJack WilliamsThe federal government expected net farm income and farm profits to fall in 2016, the third-straight year of declines . That means farmers and ranchers are taking a closer look at their finances, and many aren’t very optimistic about their prospects for 2017 . The Nebraska Power Farming Show in Lincoln is kind of like the Super Bowl of farm equipment, with almost 900 vendors and thousands of producers from all over the Midwest in attendance. It you’re looking for a place to find out about some of the tough economic choices farmers are facing, it’s a pretty good place to start. Farmers visiting the tradeshow were talking about cutting costs. Some are delaying big equipment purchases, holding on to their combines instead of shelling out for a half-million-dollar new one. Many are leasing instead of buying. Some equipment dealers at the Power Farming Show said they’ve seen a 50 percent drop in sales. Experts like Jay Parsons at the University of Nebraska Lincoln say now is the time forWatch: Down times have farmers looking to cut costshttp://hppr.org/post/watch-down-times-have-farmers-looking-cut-costs
71220 as http://hppr.orgMon, 09 Jan 2017 10:01:00 +0000Watch: Down times have farmers looking to cut costsA federal investigation has been launched into the alleged embezzlement of $2.6 million by an employee of an obscure state board that promotes the beef industry, money created by a mandatory government program funded by farmers and ranchers. No criminal charges have been filed, but the non-profit Oklahoma Beef Council in October 2016 filed a civil lawsuit seeking the recovery of money it says was obtained by its former accounting and compliance manager, identified in court records as Melissa Morton. The former compliance manager allegedly forged checks dating back to 2009, an independent audit obtained by Harvest Public Media reveals . Through her attorneys, Morton declined to comment. The Oklahoma Beef Council is one of 43 state boards that comprise the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, an organization funded by a $1-per-head “check-off” paid by farmers and r anchers each time they sell an animal. While few consumers know of the group’s existence, their “ Beef, It’s What$2.6 million paid by farmers and ranchers missing from Oklahoma Beef Councilhttp://hppr.org/post/26-million-paid-farmers-and-ranchers-missing-oklahoma-beef-council
71219 as http://hppr.orgMon, 09 Jan 2017 10:01:00 +0000$2.6 million paid by farmers and ranchers missing from Oklahoma Beef CouncilAngie HaflichControversial federal rules that would change the production of organic meat may not be finalized before President Barack Obama leaves office, leaving open the possibility that they may never go into effect.Proposed organic livestock welfare rule not guaranteed, USDA’s Vilsack sayshttp://hppr.org/post/proposed-organic-livestock-welfare-rule-not-guaranteed-usda-s-vilsack-says
70583 as http://hppr.orgWed, 21 Dec 2016 03:16:40 +0000Proposed organic livestock welfare rule not guaranteed, USDA’s Vilsack saysJeremy BernfeldShareholders of agricultural seed and chemical giant Monsanto agreed to a merger Tuesday, moving the controversial deal one-step closer to fruition.Monsanto shareholders approve merger with Bayerhttp://hppr.org/post/monsanto-shareholders-approve-merger-bayer
70441 as http://hppr.orgMon, 19 Dec 2016 02:02:36 +0000Monsanto shareholders approve merger with BayerAmy MayerCropland in the Midwest is losing its value as the downturn in the agriculture economy continues, according to a number of surveys by agricultural economists. Record-high crop prices contributed to record-high land values in 2012 and 2013, but now, that party is over.Farmland value continues slidehttp://hppr.org/post/farmland-value-continues-slide
70404 as http://hppr.orgFri, 16 Dec 2016 01:59:29 +0000Farmland value continues slideAngie HaflichMove over turkey. Step aside stuffing. Green Bean Casserole, an iconic Thanksgiving dish, turns 60 years old this year and it’s as popular as ever. Love it or loathe it, the classic Midwestern casserole has come to mean more than just a mashup of processed food sitting next to the mashed potatoes. “Green Bean casserole in the Midwest seems to be in many contexts an unintentional performance of identity, but at other times a very purposeful expression of local identity,” said Lucy Long, a folklorist, Bowling Green State University research associate and director of the non-profit Center for Food and Culture. Long, originally from the South, moved to Ohio 30 years ago and began noticing that the dish appeared on most Thanksgiving menus, crossing ethnic, religious and socioeconomic differences. She reported her findings in her 2007 academic paper, “Green Bean Casserole and Midwestern Identity: A Regional Foodways Aesthetic and Ethos.” Green Bean Casserole is part of the Midwest’s Green bean casserole a Thanksgiving tradition in its own righthttp://hppr.org/post/green-bean-casserole-thanksgiving-tradition-its-own-right
69566 as http://hppr.orgThu, 24 Nov 2016 10:01:00 +0000Green bean casserole a Thanksgiving tradition in its own rightAngie HaflichThis week, Luke talks about his success in attracting whitetail bucks by rattling antlers and, discusses a "new" set of rattling tools that bring in bucks from great distances. As Rattling Forks owner Steven Ray says, "If they can't hear it, they won't come!"Antler rattling on the High Plainshttp://hppr.org/post/antler-rattling-high-plains-0
69243 as http://hppr.orgSat, 19 Nov 2016 10:01:00 +0000Antler rattling on the High PlainsGrant GerlockAfter dueling reviews of research studies, scientific panels from the U.S. government and the World Health Organization are having a hard time agreeing whether glyphosate, the most common weed killer in the United States, can cause cancer. Known by the brand name RoundUp, glyphosate is sprayed on farm fields and lawns all across the country. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is currently reviewing the safety of glyphosate for the first time since 1993. As part of its scheduled review, the agency examined dozens of glyphosate studies and decided that it is “not likely to be carcinogenic to humans at the doses relevant to human health.” Last year, however, IARC – the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which is part of the World Health Organization – classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans." So why the discrepancy? One difference is in the evaluation of “risk.” The EPA puts an emphasis on deciding whether glyphosate is likely to cause cancer at normalScientists disagree about weed killer's cancer riskhttp://hppr.org/post/scientists-disagree-about-weed-killers-cancer-risk
69254 as http://hppr.orgThu, 17 Nov 2016 10:01:00 +0000Scientists disagree about weed killer's cancer risk